#550: Andrew Chen — Metaverse, Metrics, and Meerkats
The Tim Ferriss Show
<p><strong>Andrew Chen — Metaverse, Metrics, and Meerkats | Brought to you by</strong> <a href="http://80000hours.org/tim" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>80,000 Hours</strong></a> <strong>free career advice for high impact and doing good in the world, </strong><a href="http://wealthfront.com/tim" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>Wealthfront</strong></a><strong> automated investing</strong>, <strong>and </strong><a href="http://helixsleep.com/tim" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>Helix Sleep</strong></a><strong> premium mattresses.</strong> <strong>More on all three below.</strong></p><p><strong>Andrew Chen</strong> (<a href="https://twitter.com/andrewchen" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@andrewchen</a>) is a general partner at <a href="https://a16z.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Andreessen Horowitz</a>, where he invests in consumer technology, including social, marketplace, entertainment, and gaming experiences. Today, Andrew serves on the boards of All Day Kitchens, Clubhouse, Envoy, Hipcamp, Maven, Reforge, Sandbox VR, Singularity 6, Sleeper, Snackpass, and Substack.</p><p>Andrew is a prolific writer and leading voice on mobile, metrics, and user growth. For the past decade, he’s covered the topic on <a href="https://andrewchen.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">AndrewChen.com</a>. He is the author of <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Cold-Start-Problem-Andrew-Chen/dp/0062969749/?tag=offsitoftimfe-20" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong><em>The Cold Start Problem</em></strong></a>, a book exploring how new startups are launched. He is also a board member and instructor at <a href="https://www.reforge.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Reforge</a>, which offers selective, growth-focused programs for experienced professionals in marketing, product, data, and engineering.</p><p>Please enjoy!</p><p><strong>This episode is brought to you by </strong><a href="http://80000hours.org/tim" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>80,000 Hours</strong></a><strong>!</strong> You have roughly 80,000 hours in your career. That’s 40 hours a week, 50 weeks a year for 40 years. They add up and are one of your biggest opportunities, if not the biggest opportunity, to make a positive impact on the world. Some of the best strategies, best research, and best tactical advice I’ve seen and heard come from <a href="http://80000hours.org/tim" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>80,000 Hours</strong></a>, a nonprofit co-founded by Will MacAskill, an Oxford philosopher and a popular past guest on this podcast.</p><p>If you’re looking to make a big change to your direction, address pressing global problems from your current job, or if you’re just starting out or maybe starting a new chapter and not sure which path to pursue, <a href="http://80000hours.org/tim" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>80,000 Hours</strong></a> can help. <a href="http://80000hours.org/tim" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>Join their free newsletter</strong></a><strong>, and they’ll send you </strong><a href="http://80000hours.org/tim" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>an in-depth guide for free</strong></a><strong> that will help you identify which global problems are most pressing and where you can have the biggest impact personally. It will also help you get new ideas for high impact careers or directions that help tackle these issues.</strong></p><p>*</p><p><strong>This episode is also brought to you by </strong><a href="http://wealthfront.com/Tim" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>Wealthfront</strong></a><strong>! </strong><a href="http://wealthfront.com/Tim" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Wealthfront</a> pioneered the automated investing movement, sometimes referred to as ‘robo-advising,’ and they currently oversee $20 billion of assets for their clients. It takes about three minutes to sign up, and then Wealthfront will <a href="http://wealthfront.com/Tim" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>build you a globally diversified portfolio of ETFs based on your risk appetite</strong></a> and manage it for you at an incredibly low cost. </p><p>Smart investing should not feel like a rollercoaster ride. Let the professionals do the work for you. 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With <a href="http://helixsleep.com/tim" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Helix</a>, there’s a specific mattress to meet each and every body’s unique comfort needs. Just take their quiz—<a href="http://helixsleep.com/tim" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">only two minutes to complete</a>—that matches your body type and sleep preferences to the perfect mattress for you. They have a 10-year warranty, and you get to try it out for a hundred nights, risk free. They’ll even pick it up from you if you don’t love it. <strong>And now, to my dear listeners, Helix is offering up to 200 dollars off all mattress orders plus two free pillows at </strong><a href="http://helixsleep.com/tim" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>HelixSleep.com/Tim</strong></a><strong>.</strong></p><p><strong>*</strong></p><p><strong>For show notes and past guests, please visit</strong> <a href="https://tim.blog/podcast/?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=podcast-description" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>tim.blog/podcast</strong></a><strong>.</strong></p><p><strong>Sign up for Tim’s email newsletter (“5-Bullet Friday”) at </strong><a href="https://go.tim.blog/5-bullet-friday-1/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>tim.blog/friday</strong></a><strong>.</strong></p><p><strong>For transcripts of episodes, go to </strong><a href="http://tim.blog/transcripts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>tim.blog/transcripts</strong></a><strong>.</strong></p><p><strong>Discover Tim’s books: </strong><a href="http://tim.blog/books" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>tim.blog/books</strong></a><strong>.</strong></p><p><strong>Follow Tim:</strong></p><p><strong>Twitter</strong>: <a href="https://twitter.com/tferriss" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">twitter.com/tferriss</a> </p><p><strong>Instagram</strong>: <a href="https://instagram.com/timferriss/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">instagram.com/timferriss</a></p><p><strong>Facebook</strong>: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/TimFerriss/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">facebook.com/timferriss</a> </p><p><strong>YouTube</strong>: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/timferriss" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">youtube.com/timferriss</a></p><p>Past guests on <a href="http://tim.blog/podcast" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong><em>The Tim Ferriss Show</em></strong></a> include <a href="https://tim.blog/2020/12/08/jerry-seinfeld/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Jerry Seinfeld</a>, <a href="https://tim.blog/2020/06/26/hugh-jackman/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Hugh Jackman</a>, <a href="https://tim.blog/2020/04/16/jane-goodall/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Dr. Jane Goodall</a>, <a href="https://tim.blog/2018/11/27/lebron-james-mike-mancias/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">LeBron James</a>, <a href="https://tim.blog/2020/05/20/kevin-hart/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Kevin Hart</a>, <a href="https://tim.blog/2018/09/07/doris-kearns-goodwin-leadership/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Doris Kearns Goodwin</a>, <a href="https://tim.blog/2015/12/06/jamie-foxx/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Jamie Foxx</a>, <a href="https://tim.blog/2020/10/19/matthew-mcconaughey/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Matthew McConaughey</a>, <a href="https://tim.blog/2017/05/21/esther-perel/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Esther Perel</a>, <a href="https://tim.blog/2020/05/08/elizabeth-gilbert/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Elizabeth Gilbert</a>, <a href="https://tim.blog/2017/12/20/terry-crews-how-to-have-do-and-be-all-you-want/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Terry Crews</a>, <a href="https://tim.blog/2020/08/12/sia/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Sia</a>, <a href="https://tim.blog/2020/10/27/yuval-noah-harari/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Yuval Noah Harari</a>, <a href="https://tim.blog/2016/06/21/malcolm-gladwell/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Malcolm Gladwell</a>, <a href="https://tim.blog/2020/05/27/secretary-madeleine-albright/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Madeleine Albright</a>, <a href="https://tim.blog/2017/03/30/cheryl-strayed/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Cheryl Strayed</a>, <a 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